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  • Daily Update: RAW Ratings, CM Punk’s possible opponent, Vince McMahon’s workout

    TV Tonight:

    UFC Tonight airs at 6:00 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1, much earlier than usual, and it will be replayed at 10:00 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 2.

    NXT at 8:00 p.m. ET on WWE Network is part two of the best of 2015.

    ROH at midnight ET on COMET features Roderick Strong (c) vs. Stevie Richards for the ROH Television Championship.

    It’s a soft launch, but if you’ve ever wanted to WATCH a radio show here on the site, check out our new Youtube page!  No full video shows, but lots of video clips, full free audio shows that you can tell your friends about, and much more to come!  Make sure you subscribe today!

    Figure Four Weekly

    Figure Four Weekly 1/4/2016: More on Gawker motioning to dismiss Hulk Hogan lawsuit

    More information on Gawker’s motion to dismiss Hulk Hogan’s sex tape lawsuit, tons more.

    Wrestling Observer Newsletter

    We have our annual business year in review as the lead of the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter this week. We cover our awards balloting year from 12/1/14 to 11/30/15 looking at the biggest events and biggest draws, with the year’s biggest crowds, records set in several different companies, Cena compared to those in similar positions on the all-time list, the year’s PPV buys for every wrestling, MMA and boxing show, how this year compared with other years.

    Dwayne Johnson returning for WrestleMania, different ideas of where he may fit in, and his recent track record of WrestleMania matches.

    The history of New Japan on January 4th at the Tokyo Dome. The first New Japan Tokyo Dome show and its main event, what drew the first house, what Lou Thesz said to Antonio Inoki after the show and why Thesz thought the result was a good thing and why it ended up being a waste. We look at how this year’s show will differ from last year as well as a match-by-match rundown and a look at the history of the New Japan big four, Tanahashi, Okada, A.J. Styles and Nakamura, with all of their previous Tokyo Dome matches.

    Jonathan Coachman on HGH usage in WWE, why usage is so prevalent in certain types of sports and entertainment.

    WWE injury coverage, why WWE stars are doing more NBC media, how movies with Sting are doing at the box office, how the WWE’s head of medical came across in the movie “Concussion” plus a concussion expert on Daniel Bryan situation. Update on Nikki Bella, NXT sellouts, Brock Lesnar’s next match, Cena facing a surprise opponent, Chris Jericho on future, Royal Rumble, Sin Cara injury update, NXT in Dallas, the go-home show for WrestleMania, two international stars about to start with WWE and the Bayley character on the main roster.

    The holiday show in Madison Square Garden coverage, Ben Askren talks about One’s possibly revolutionary weight cutting regulations that could be the catalyst for changing MMA.  We look at the first Rizin show, the sad spectacle of Sakuraba, the pro wrestlers on the show, the mentality behind why certain people were on the show and match-by-match coverage.

    PLUS MUCH MORE! CLICK HERE FOR A FULL WRESTLING OBSERVER PREVIEW

    The Latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter: January 4, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Business year in review, Rock at Wrestlemania 32, tons more.

    You can also order the print Observer right now and get it delivered to your door via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer

    You can also order print issues at www.paypal.com directing funds to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

    Rates are:

    For the United States, it is $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52.  In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to moonsault@mediaplusint.com  For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52.

    If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.

    If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can get one free classic issue of your choice sent to you today.  With a 40 issue subscription, you can get two free classic issues sent to you today. 

    Click here for the most requested Wrestling Observer back issues.

    Check out the latest Online Wrestling Observer BACK ISSUE: November 23, 1998 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Survivor Series review, Rock becomes Corporate Champion
    A full review of WWF Survivor Series with The Rock becoming the Corporate Champion, more WCW woes, plus tons of news.

    TODAY’S DAILY UPDATE

    Monday’s RAW ratings continue their disappointing trend.  Details here.Some additional RAW ratings notes from our Paul Fontaine:  “January 2015 was down 10% overall from January 2014. December 2015 was the 13th consecutive month that RAW ratings were down from the same month the previous year and they are well on their way to making it 14 months in a row. This is the longest streak like this since October 2006-June 2008, when they dropped 21 consecutive months. For the record, they were averaging between 3.15 and 3.95 ratings points at that time, about 35% higher than the current rating average.”

    MMA Fighting has a big article about Mickey Gall, the man who may end up fighting CM Punk in his UFC debut.  This guy has got a lot to say, which means he’s a perfect opponent (1-0 as a pro with 2 amateur wins). Gall will be on the latest UFC/Dana White Looking For A Fight reality show that debuts on YouTube on January 11th.

    In its latest effort to push the painted swimsuit bit, SI has a pic of Ronda Rousey’s naked butt. Kind of… and if you want to see the less censored version.

    WWE

    • Muscle and Fitness has an article about Vince McMahon’s workout, complete with photographic proof of how jacked he is at 70. If you saw Raw, no more proof is necessary.
    • The show will be hammered on Monday, particularly since they did absolutely nothing to promote anything on the show other than announcing that Brock Lesnar was going to show up.
    • For those of you who vividly remember the “Finger Poke of Doom” that had its yearly anniversary on Monday, you are now so old that the clip is an ancient mystery unable to be comprehended by younger writers.

    UFC/MMA

    • The UFC 195 prelims did 1,023,000 viewers Saturday on FS 1 — a much higher number than would’ve been expected given interest in the PPV and the marquee value (or lack thereof) of fighters on that portion of the show. No show that did 1 million viewers plus for the prelims has done less than 325,000 buys in the FS 1 era. That would be a higher than expected buyrate for this show.
    • Martin Kampmann, a UFC welterweight who has headlined five smaller shows for UFC in the past, announced his retirement today at the age of 33. In an interview with UFC.com, he stated that he will probably remain around the sport in a coaching or advisory capacity, but won’t fight again. He last fought in August 2013, losing via 4th round KO to Carlos Condit.
    • UFC announced two fights today for cards in February. At UFC 196, Misha Cirkunov (10-2), who had an impressive debut at UFC Saskatoon, will take on the debuting Alex Nicholson (6-1) in a Light Heavyweight bout. Sam Alvey is injured and had to pull out of his middleweight fight against Daniel Sarafian (9-5). Replacing him will be Oluwale Bamgbose (5-1), who lost to Uriah Hall in his UFC debut last August.
    • Josh Koscheck is out of Bellator 148 due to injury, originally slated to be his promotional debut. The Paul Daley vs. Andy Uhrich fight has been moved to the main event slot of that show. With no other even moderate stars on the undercard, this show is going to struggle to do any kind of rating. This also might put off the eventual Koscheck/Daley fight, but Bellator might just do it anyway assuming Daley wins.
    • Bloody Elbow has a detailed article about legal and other issues plaguing Titan FC.
    • Here’s the MMA Hour 2015 Awards with Ariel Helwani. Helwani is also a guest on Jim Ross’ podcast this week too.

    MISC

    • Interestingly, not only is TNA doing a LIVE PPV on Friday night, which seems like madness since they had exactly one TV show with which to promote it, but they are also apparently only charging $14.95 for it.  At least, that’s the price on the Flipps app.  You can buy it on traditional PPV as well.
    • New Japan announced last night that Yohei Komatsu & Sho Tanaka will be finishing up at the end of the month to go to CMLL for their learning excursion, with the Fantasticamania tours serving as their farwell. Like with most young lion excursions, they will most likely remain in CMLL for the next couple of years before being brought back to NJPW. They start in CMLL on 1/31 as Fujin (Komatsu) and Rajin (Tanaka) which are names based on wind and thunder gods, respectively.
    • Kurt Angle said that his matches at Sands Bethlehem Event Center will be among his last and best.
    • Here’s an interview with Jim Brunzell on Steel Domain Radio.
    • Full NJPW/CMLL Fantasticamania lineups can be found here.
    • PWEclipse runs its next show on February 27 at the Oshawa Legion Hall in Oshawa, Ontario, with Cody Deaner and Ethan Page.
    • Here’s Live Audio Wrestling’s yearly ‘Best Of’ show, taking a look back at 2015. As always, Dave Meltzer makes a weekly appearance.

    Here is today’s FULL Daily Pro Wrestling History including International history: Daily pro wrestling history (1/5): Kerry Von Erich beats Jerry Lawler for World Class title

  • The Week In British Wrestling: RevPro & ICW Tape TV; PROGRESS go large

    1) The Revolution will be televised!

    With access to traditional television shows thin on the ground for UK promotions, they’ve had to think outside the box for solutions. In last week’s column, I gave a rundown of the different options available if you want to watch British wrestling (apart from the always-preferable live option), and this week Revolution-Pro held another of their popular “TV” tapings at the Cockpit Theatre in Marylebone, London. The Cockpit is more used to hosting fringe theatre but is a perfect venue for a television taping, harking back to the studio shows of old with its tight seating arrangement perfectly fitting around the squared circle in the centre. RevPro held three tapings at the Cockpit last year, for their YouTube TV show, and on Sunday they came back with a stacked card for a new run of shows for 2016.

    Despite ENDVR taking place at the same time just 3 miles across London (more of which later), the show still attracted a good crowd, and they were treated to a mini-tournament for the Undisputed British Cruiserweight title, with Pete Dunne overcoming “Flash” Morgan Webster in the final – el Ligero & Josh Bodom being eliminated in the semi-finals. Jimmy Havoc continued his feud with the Revolutionists, bringing a mystery partner to face the Undisputed British Tag-Team champions, Sha Samuels & James Castle, and it turned out to be T-Bone.

    Thanks to shenanigans, the champions kept their titles but Havoc has promised to bring back T-Bone and a third man to take on the tag champs and Bodom at High Stakes on January 16th. Main-eventing a card that also featured Big Damo, Mark Haskins, Marty Scurll, and Martin Kirby, was a bout between Will Ospreay and ACH, who made his return to RevPro after October’s Uprising. The two tore the house down and the match will be available to watch – for free – on RevPro’s YouTube channel very soon.

    2) PROGRESS take their big guns to Brixton.

    In last week’s column I trailed HUGE news from PROGRESS, and speculated what it could be. Well, speculate no more, because on January 1st they announced that September’s show – chapter 36 – will be held at the legendary Brixton Academy, in south London. It won’t be the company’s first trip south of the river – their ProJo wrestling school is situated round the corner from the Academy, and they’ve held trainee shows at the Bedford, in nearby Balham, before – but it will be the first time they’ve played a hall bigger than their usual 700 seats at the Electric Ballroom. The Academy will be set up for 2000 seats, and while that is dwarfed by ICW’s planned show at the Hydro in Glasgow, it will be the biggest crowd to see a British wrestling show in London for a good thirty years.

    PROGRESS have always resisted temptation to move to a bigger building before, simply stating that the Electric Ballroom treat them very well and they would be afraid to lose that special atmosphere created at the sold-out shows, so this is a step into the unknown for the company. However, they’re doing it in conjunction with LiveNation, the company that handled NXT’s UK tour, and the logistics shouldn’t be too high a hurdle. Whether they can sell almost 3 times the amount of tickets they usually do in London is another thing, but UK wrestling is VERY hot right now, and with a 9-month lead they have every chance. Progress indeed!

    3) A Sex Pest won a rap battle.

    It’s impossible to sum up an entire show, especially one featuring so many different characters as an ENDVR show, in one pithy line, but – yes – a sex pest did win a rap battle at ENDVR’s first show of the year on Sunday. Anyone who follows ENDVR (and the PROGRESS shows as of the last London chapter) will know that the sex pest is Jack Sexsmith, and the rap battle was a precursor to his showdown with “Body Guy” Roy Johnson on Sunday’s show at the Garage in Islington. You’ll be reassured to know that “Mr Cocko” made his customary appearance, and those of you who don’t know anything about Jack Sexsmith will no doubt be very confused by now.

    Also on the show, Pollyanna and Livvi won women’s matches, Damon Moser (a favourite for this year’s Natural Progression tournament) won a four-way over Pastor Bill Eaver, Earl Black Jr, and TK Cooper, and ProJo head trainer Darrell Allen beat Chuck Mambo in a “traditional British rules” match (which, unusually for such contests, didn’t suck). Some of the more established PROGRESS stars made an appearance (and a whole load of them were across London at the RevPro TV taping!), with Wild Boar teaming with PROGRESS-debutant Mike Bird (a mainstay of the south-west scene, and Mark Andrews’s trainer) taking a DQ win over Paul Robinson & trainee Shen Woo, and Eddie Dennis and Dave Mastiff colliding in a hard-hitting main event. The consequences of that fight will be felt long after the conclusion of Sunday’s show, with Dennis earning a tag-team title shot for himself and Mark Andrews, and Mastiff earning the ire of PROGRESS management with a sustained beating on a prone Dennis after the match.

    4) Big shows aren’t just channel changers on the USA Network.

    As well as PROGRESS planning their big outing to Brixton in September, several other promotions have already announced big shows of their own for 2016. New Generation Wrestling have already announced their mid-year spectacular, Ultimate Showdown, in Hull in late May, Southside have their annual Speed King tournament inked in for April, and – of course – everything that Insane Championship Wrestling does this year is leading up to their bigger-than-big-it’s-huge show at the 11,000-capacity Hydro in October.

    But even bigger than that show, in relative terms, is Pro-Wrestling Chaos’s April 8th show in Bristol, with The Young Bucks flown in as a special attraction. Why is that so big? Because Chaos, a Bristol-based promotion formed in 2013 for former grappler Dave Mercy, usually run a 200-seater hall and they’ve booked a 3000-seater for this show, which they’ve promised to stack. As gambles go it’s a pretty big one, but with the Bucks only doing one other UK show (in faraway Edinburgh) it’s a risk that could pay off.

    5) Friday Night’s Alright For Fight Club

    In order to bring fresh and exclusive footage to their ICW OnDemand service, the promotion held another Friday Night Fight Club taping at the Garage nightclub, in Glasgow, last weekend. Like RevPro’s taping, they stacked the card with all their usual regulars, plus semi-regular import Tommy End, for a show which saw a title change, an ICW Heavyweight title defence, and a huge 8-man main event, featuring Grado, Davey Blaze, Noam Dar, and Kenny Williams against the New Age Kliq. They have another taping scheduled for this coming Sunday – the only show anywhere in the UK, as far as I can work out – with everything leading up to their big Square Go! show on January 24th.

    Other than a few holiday camp shows (including one where the ATTACK! boys played to over 1000 people), the only other show over the last week was WrestleForce’s return to Rayleigh, in Essex, which featured their usual cast of characters.

  • Ratings disappointing for WWE RAW with no competition

    January 4th’s edition of WWE Monday Night Raw did what has to be considered a disappointing number given it was the first week since September that they were without any NFL competition.

    The show did 3.57 million viewers, even with the advertising of Roman Reigns defending the WWE title against Sheamus with Vince McMahon as referee. Worse, even with no football to blame, the second and third hours dropped from the second strongest first hour since April. The number is lower than what the show had been doing in the summer.

    The rating is almost identical to last week when Raw went against the highest rated NFL game of the season, and it’s usually normal to expect a 10 percent increase just based on no NFL competition alone. It is up from the football season average, but given the ratings the first two McMahon appearances drew, it was down from the first and the same as the second without the competition.

    Raw was the highest rated show on cable for the night, however, slightly ahead of The O’Reilly Factor on Fox News.

    The three hours were:

    • 8 p.m. 3.71 million viewers
    • 9 p.m. 3.52 million viewers
    • 10 p.m. 3.50 million viewers

  • Daily pro wrestling history (01/06): Bockwinkel and Stevens regain AWA World Tag Team Titles

    1948

    Minneapolis, Minnesota:
    – George Gordienko beat Dave Levin
    – Buddy Rogers beat Ben Morgan

    1967 

    Minneapolis, Minnesota:
    – “Pretty Boy” Larry Hennig & “Handsome” Harley Race regained the AWA world tag team titles from Dick the Bruiser & The Crusher 
    – Killer Kowalski beat Verne Gagne dq
    – Reggie Parks beat the Alaskan
    – Jack Lanza beat Big K
    – Chris Markoff beat Doug Gilbert

    1970

    Tampa, Florida:
    – Brass Knuckles Title: Danny Miller defeated Missouri Mauler to win the title
    – Florida Tag Titles: Cyclon Negro & Jack Brisco defeated Chris Markoff & Bronko Lubich to win the titles
    – Mr. Saito defeated Bob Orton by dq
    – Mephisto & Dante drew Sam Steamboat & Thunderbolt Patterson
    – Bob Roop defeated Aldo Bogni
    – Bobo Johnson defeated Buddy Colt

    1973

    Minneapolis, Minnesota:
    – Ray Stevens & Nick Bockwinkel regained the AWA tag titles from Verne Gagne & Billy Robinson
    – The Crusher beat Dusty Rhodes dq
    – Superstar Billy Graham beat Wahoo McDaniel
    – Ivan Koloff beat Reggie Parks
    – Bob Bruggers beat Big K dq
    – Ric Flair beat Johnny Heidman 
    – Jim Brunzell drew Tinker Todd

    1975

    West Palm Beach, Florida:
    – NWA Title: Jack Brisco defeated Dory Funk, Jr. by dq
    – Texas Bullrope Match: Dusty Rhodes defeated The Mongolian Stomper
    – Jos LeDuc defeated “Cowboy” Bill Watts

    1976

    Tampa, Florida:
    – NWA Title: Terry Funk draw Billy Robinson 
    – Texas Tornado Match: Bob Roop & King Curtis defeated Big Bad John & Dusty Rhodes
    – Florida Tag Titles: Eddie & Mike Graham defeated Karl Von Steiger & Bob Orton, Jr to retain titles
    – Thunderbolt Patterson defeated Frank Goodish
    – Rocky Johnson defeated Mike York
    – Jerry Brisco defeated Killer Kowalski
    – Dino Bravo defeated Rip Hawk

    1977

    – Ed Wiskowski drew with Pat O’Conner 
    – Harley Race downed Mitsuo Hata 
    – Central States title match: Bob Slaughter (Sgt. Slaughter) beat Mike George to retain title
    – NWA World title match: Champion Terry Funk took 2 out of 3 falls from Bulldog Bob Brown to retain title

    1983

    San Juan, Puerto Rico:
    – Title Unification Match: Carlos Colon, the WWC world heavyweight title defeated Ric Flair, the NWA Champions. (Title change was not recognized and Flair returned to the United States as NWA champion)

    Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada:
    – Jerry Blackwell & Sheik Adnan beat Mad Dog Vachon & Jim Brunzell
    – Hulk Hogan beat Ken Patera dq
    – Wahoo McDaniel beat Rene Goulet
    – Rick Martel beat Bobby Duncum
    – Buck Zumhofe beat Bobby Heenan
    – Baron Von Raschke beat Tom Lintz

    1984

    St. Louis, Missouri:
    – NWA Champion Ric Flair beat King Kong Brody dq
    – Harley Race beat David Von Erich to win the Missouri State Title
    – AWA Tag Team Champions Ken Patera & Jerry Blackwell beat Dick the Bruiser & Gene Kiniski (sub Ted DiBiase)
    – Dory Funk Jr drew Bob Orton Jr
    – Ron Ritchie beat 666 (sub Buddy Landell)
    – Tully Blanchard (sub Buck Robley) beat Buzz Tyler
    – King Cobra & Tiger Mask beat Roger Kirby & Scott Farris

    1985

    Greensboro, North Carolina:
    – Magnum T.A. won the 20-man battle royal
    – NWA Champion Ric Flair beat Harley Race
    – Lights Out match: Don Kernodle beat Ivan Koloff
    – NWA Tag Team Champions Dusty Rhodes & Manny Fernandez beat AWA Tag Team Champions Road Warriors
    – non title match: Magnum TA beat US Champion Wahoo McDaniel
    – Tully Blanchard beat Dick Slater  
    – Charlie Brown & Assassin I & Buzz Tyler beat Superstar Billy Graham & Ron Bass & JJ Dillon

    Orlando, Florida:
    – Florida Title: Brian Blair defeated Jesse Barr to win the title
    – Sweet Brown Sugar defeated Jack Hart
    – “Pistol” Pez Whatley defeated Mike Golden
    – PYT defeated Pez Whatley & Scott McGhee
    – Texas Tornado Match: Michael Hayes & Buddy Roberts defeated Jim Neidhart & Krusher Kruschev 
    – Lumberjack Match: Dutch Mantell defeated The Saint

    1987

    Tampa, Florida:
    – Southern Title: Bad News Allen defeated Lex Luger to win the title
    – Kendall Windham & Vic Steamboat defeated The Sheepherders
    – Ron Simmons defeated Ed “The Bull” Gantner dq
    – Stan Lane & Dewey Forte defeated Sean Royal & Chris Champion dq

    1992

    Miami, Florida:
    – Kerry Von Erich defeated Hercules
    – WWF Intercontinental Champion Bret Hart defeated the Mountie
    – IRS defeated the Big Bossman
    – Hulk Hogan defeated Ric Flair via countout

    2003

    Phoenix, Arizona:
    – Lance Storm & William Regal defeated WWE Raw Tag Team Champions Booker T & Goldust to win the tag team titles

    2008

    Orlando, Florida:
    – TNA Tag Team champions AJ Styles & Tomko defeated Samoa Joe & Kevin Nash to retain the titles
    – TNA champion Kurt Angle defeated Christian Cage to retain the title

  • Smackdown spoilers 1/5: Dean Ambrose vs Kevin Owens, Charlotte vs Becky Lynch

    Smackdown spoilers from tonight in Laredo for the first show on the USA Network Thursday night:

    The announcing team was Mauro Ranallo, Jerry Lawler and Byron Saxton.

    John Cena came out and issued a challenge to Alberto Del Rio for the U.S. title, coming off the finish of their Raw match last week.  Del Rio refused to give Cena another title match.

    Kalisto pinned Del Rio in a non-title match.  Said to be really good.

    The Miz had a Miz TV segment.  The New Day came out and they started complaining about Chris Jericho.  Dolph Ziggler then came out and was backed up by Goldust, R-Truth and Neville.

    This led to an eight-man tag where Ziggler & Goldust & R-Truth & Neville beat The New Day & Miz.

    Charlotte beat Becky Lynch to retain the Divas title due to outside help from her father.

    Dean Ambrose went to a double count out to retain the IC title in a match with Kevin Owens.

  • Figure Four Weekly 1/4/2016: More on Gawker motioning to dismiss Hulk Hogan lawsuit

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  • Daily Update: Styles, Nakamura, Bullet Club to WWE, Rousey to host SNL

    The huge news story which broke early Monday morning, is that former IWGP and TNA Champion AJ Styles, former IWGP Champion Shinsuke Nakamura, Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson have given notice to New Japan Pro Wrestling. We have more here. It appears that those with current NJPW contracts will be finishing up their contracted dates before heading to WWE. It is unknown whether or not they will start on the main roster or head to NXT. It seems obvious, but that’s not always the route WWE takes, as we’ve seen with Samoa Joe and others who were ready when they signed. Bryan and Dave did an extra show yesterday with Filthy Tom discussing the situation. NJPW booker Gedo was told right before the big Tokyo Dome show, Wrestle Kingdom 10, about losing the talent, but apparently no finishes were changed. 

    Chris Jericho re-re-re-re-debuted last night on Monday Night Raw, and did some ridiculously unfunny comedy with the New Day. We’re looking for reports from Raw in San Antonio with Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus for the WWE title with Vince McMahon as referee, with anything not evident from the broadcast.  

    We’re also looking for reports on WWE show in Corpus Christi (Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens for IC title; Kane vs. Bray Wyatt) to Dave Meltzer.

    Don’t forget! The first Smackdown on the USA Network will be taped on Tuesday night in Laredo.  Mauro Ranallo debuts as announcer and John Cena will be on the show. 

    TNA ON POP TV AT 9 P.M. FROM BETHLEHEM, PA

    Matt Hardy vs. Ethan Carter III

    Bobby Lashley vs Eric Young

    Winners of these two matches meet for the vacant TNA title

    Figure Four Weekly

    Figure Four Weekly 1/4/2016: More on Gawker motioning to dismiss Hulk Hogan lawsuit

    More information on Gawker’s motion to dismiss Hulk Hogan’s sex tape lawsuit, tons more.

    Wrestling Observer Newsletter

    We have our annual business year in review as the lead of the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter this week. We cover our awards balloting year from 12/1/14 to 11/30/15 looking at the biggest events and biggest draws, with the year’s biggest crowds, records set in several different companies, Cena compared to those in similar positions on the all-time list, the year’s PPV buys for every wrestling, MMA and boxing show, how this year compared with other years.

    Dwayne Johnson returning for WrestleMania, different ideas of where he may fit in, and his recent track record of WrestleMania matches.

    The history of New Japan on January 4th at the Tokyo Dome. The first New Japan Tokyo Dome show and its main event, what drew the first house, what Lou Thesz said to Antonio Inoki after the show and why Thesz thought the result was a good thing and why it ended up being a waste. We look at how this year’s show will differ from last year as well as a match-by-match rundown and a look at the history of the New Japan big four, Tanahashi, Okada, A.J. Styles and Nakamura, with all of their previous Tokyo Dome matches.

    Jonathan Coachman on HGH usage in WWE, why usage is so prevalent in certain types of sports and entertainment.

    WWE injury coverage, why WWE stars are doing more NBC media, how movies with Sting are doing at the box office, how the WWE’s head of medical came across in the movie “Concussion” plus a concussion expert on Daniel Bryan situation. Update on Nikki Bella, NXT sellouts, Brock Lesnar’s next match, Cena facing a surprise opponent, Chris Jericho on future, Royal Rumble, Sin Cara injury update, NXT in Dallas, the go-home show for WrestleMania, two international stars about to start with WWE and the Bayley character on the main roster.

    The holiday show in Madison Square Garden coverage, Ben Askren talks about One’s possibly revolutionary weight cutting regulations that could be the catalyst for changing MMA.  We look at the first Rizin show, the sad spectacle of Sakuraba, the pro wrestlers on the show, the mentality behind why certain people were on the show and match-by-match coverage.

    PLUS MUCH MORE! CLICK HERE FOR A FULL WRESTLING OBSERVER PREVIEW

    The Latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter: January 4, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Business year in review, Rock at Wrestlemania 32, tons more.

    You can also order the print Observer right now and get it delivered to your door via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer

    You can also order print issues at www.paypal.com directing funds to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

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    For the United States, it is $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52.  In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to moonsault@mediaplusint.com  For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52.

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    If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can get one free classic issue of your choice sent to you today.  With a 40 issue subscription, you can get two free classic issues sent to you today. 

    Click here for the most requested Wrestling Observer back issues.

    Check out the latest Online Wrestling Observer BACK ISSUE: November 23, 1998 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Survivor Series review, Rock becomes Corporate Champion
    A full review of WWF Survivor Series with The Rock becoming the Corporate Champion, more WCW woes, plus tons of news.

    TODAY’S DAILY UPDATE

    Our own Dave Meltzer will be honored by the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.Click here for more details.

    Check out the WK10 fallout and post show angles:NJPW New Year’s Dash report: Big Bullet Club angle, NEVER trios titles defended

    Ronda Rousey hosting Saturday Night Live in January

    WWE

    • The Royal Rumble PPV will be given away for FREE on the WWE Network as was  announced last night on Raw (first time subscribers only). The announcement came on a day where investors lost a bit of confidence in the WWE stock which finished down 23 cents to $17.61 per share and is down another 38 cents today, as of this update.
    • The Miz says WWE talent is drug tested ”non-stop, all day, every day.” Isn’t it more like “quarterly?” At least as of September 2007, when program administrator Dr. David Black was interviewed as part of the Congressional inquiry into pro wrestling, four times a year was the guaranteed minimum. At the time, it was a recent change from aiming for four times a year as the average. ​

    UFC/MMA

    • EA Sports announced the release date of the new EA Sports UFC 2 video game as March 16 and released the first gameplay trailer. You can pre-order the game now, and it was announced that pre-orders will come with a code to get Kazushi Sakuraba, Bas Rutten, and a mystery fighter to be named later as downloadable content.
    • Jose Aldo became just the third MMA fighter (after Jon Jones and Ronda Rousey) to make the Forbes 30 under 30 list. He is also the only Brazilian on the list. According to Forbes, it is a list of the “brightest young entrepreneurs, breakout talents and change agents in 20 different sectors” and Aldo made the athletes group. Neither Jones nor Rousey (nor Conor McGregor for that matter) are on this year’s list.  
    • WSOF announced the final two fights for its main card broadcast on NBC Sports Network, the company’s next show. All four fighters are complete unknowns. Two unbeaten welterweights, Jaleel Willis (6-0) and Chauncey Foxworth (2-0), square off in one while two lightweights, Bryce Mitchell (4-0) and Jorge Medina (4-2), meet in the other. The show is headlined by former UFC fighter Mike Ricci squaring off with Joe Condon in a lightweight bout.
    • Former Bellator Light Heavyweight champion Emanuel Newton will face Linton Vassell at Bellator 149 in a fight announced by the promotion today. This is a rematch of a fight they had when Newton was champion, where Vassell was winning by dominating the grappling until, out of nowhere, Newton got a rear naked choke out of nowhere for the win. The show takes place on February 19th in Houston and is headlined by the double spectacle of Ken Shamrock v Royce Gracie and Kimbo Slice v Dada 5000.
    • A website in India has a feature on an fighter turned actress cast to play a boxer. Calling her a “national-level kick boxer who is well-versed with mixed martial arts and is a black belt in karate,” the article discusses transition of Ritika Singh from combat sports to acting in Bollywood.

    MISC

    • A CBS affiliate in Philadelphia has an article about Chikara.
    • This week’s Between the Sheets podcast features WWN Live announcer/FSM columnist/former NXT Creative Assistant Rob Naylor joining the show to discuss December 29, 1986 – January 4, 1987 including the chances that Wrestlemania III gets cancelled because of Andre the Giant’s back problems, Paul Orndorff’s neck and shoulder issues, AJPW & NJPW foreigner wackiness, Jesse Ventura in Arnold movies, all sorts of territory goodness especially our love of Continental, and Rob’s love of Vladimir Petrov
    • On the latest 6:05 Superpodcast, David Bixenspan and Brian Last discuss Mario Galento exposing the business in 1974, the amazing story of Jack Donovan getting ambushed in a Tennessee locker room, Dark Journey’s surprising new career, and more.

    Here is today’s FULL Daily Pro Wrestling History including International history: Daily pro wrestling history (1/5): Kerry Von Erich beats Jerry Lawler for World Class title

  • Dave Meltzer to receive honor from National Wrestling Hall of Fame

    Photo: NY Times

    Wrestling Observer Newsletter founder Dave Meltzer will receive the Jim Melby Award from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame’s Dan Gable Museum later this year in Waterloo, IA.

    On the induction weekend of July 14-16, Dave will be recognized during the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame induction weekend. The Jim Melby Award recognizes excellence in professional journalism, named in honor of Jim Melby, a professional wrestling historian and journalist. Tickets are available for the entire weekend by emailing the museum or by calling (319) 233-0745.

    Also set to be inducted during the weekend: former UFC fighter and MMA personality Chael Sonnen. Four more inductees will be announced later this year.

    From the press release:

    “I am very proud to receive this honor because of what it entails and because of my great respect for Jim Melby and the connection with Lou Thesz,” said Meltzer. “In 1971, I sent a newsletter to Melby, and he praised it in his fan club column in Wrestling Monthly Magazine. I started getting subscribers based on his recommendation. The truth is, there is not a chance in the world my life would have taken the turn it did without Melby, and he was so gracious with me when I was in my preteen and teenager years.”

    Besides his work being read here on our site, Dave can also be read on MMA Fighting.com where he contributes as an MMA Senior Writer. He’s published, edited, and written the Observer newsletter since 1983 and has worked for The National Sports Daily and Yahoo Sports in his long career.

  • Ronda Rousey hosting Saturday Night Live in January

    NBC announced Tuesday morning that former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey will be hosting the Saturday, January 23rd episode of Saturday Night Live, putting her in a very small category of athletes who have hosted an episode of the iconic series.

    Yahoo’s Kevin Iole reported the story this morning, confirming reports from those close to the show that had started surfacing two days earlier.

    Rousey will be the first MMA fighter to host the show. Rousey was actually in Dwayne Johnson’s backstage entourage when he hosted the show this past March, the night before WrestleMania when the two did the in-ring skit together with HHH and Stephanie McMahon.

    Iole noted that the only previous fighters to host the show have been Marvin Hagler and George Foreman. Past athletes who have hosted include Michael Jordan, Chris Evert, Derek Jeter, Lebron James, Tom Brady, and Peyton Manning.

    After appearing in the Entourage movie and Furious 7, Rousey is set to be the lead in the Road House reboot that will film this year.

  • Daily pro wrestling history (1/5): Kerry Von Erich beats Jerry Lawler for World Class title

    1899

    Clinton, Iowa:
    – Tom Cannon beat Farmer Burns in 2 out of 3 falls

    1948 

    Des Moines, Iowa:
    – Orville Brown defeated Sonny Myers to win the NWA World Heavyweight Title

    1950

    Columbus, Ohio:
    – Frankie Talaber won the Midwest Wrestling Association World Junior Heavyweight Title from Cyclone Anaya

    1951

    Houston, Texas:
    – Danny Savich defeated Danny McShain to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title 

    1956

    Milwaukee, Wisconsin:
    – Zack Melkov and Tony Toss defeated Jack Allen and Jerry Woods for the NWA Illinois Midwest Tag Team Title 

    Kansas City, Kansas:
    – Wild Red Berry beat Richard Brown 
    – Ike Eakins beat Johnny Kostas 
    – Bibber McCoy beat Jim Dobie 
    – Mike DiBiase drew Don Whitehead 

    1957

    London, England:
    – Mick McManus defeated Jack Dempsey to win the British Welterweight Title 

    1958

    Mobile, Alabama:
    – Yvon Robert and Billy Wicks defeated Don and Jackie Fargo for the Mid-America version of the NWA World Tag Team Title 

    1962 

    Houston, Texas:
    – Dory Dixon won the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title by defeating Jack Dalton (Don Fargo) 

    1963

    Omaha, Nebraska:
    – AWA Champion Verne Gagne beat Crusher
    – Bob Ellis beat Bob Orton
    – Tex McKenzie beat Lee Henning
    – Guy Mitchell beat Sonny Myers

    1965

    Dallas, Texas:
    – Fritz Von Erich defeated Pepper Gomez for the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title

    Tampa, Florida:
    – Eddie Graham no contest Fred Blassie
    – The Assassins defeated Dick Steinborn & Lou Bastein
    – Harry “Georgia Boy” Smith defeated Pedro Godoy

    1966

    Honolulu, Hawaii:
    – Nick Kozak defeated Killer Kowalski to win the Hawaii version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Title
    – Ron Reed defeated Luther Lindsay for the NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Title

    1967

    Portland, Oregon:
    – Tony Borne won the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title from Paul Jones

    Jacksonville, Florida:
    – World Tag Titles: The Infernos defeated Sam Steamboat & Jose Lothario by dq
    – Florida Title: Lester Welch defeated Ken Lucas to retain title
    – Sputnik Monroe defeated Bronko Kelly
    – Bobby Fields defeated Corsica Jean

    1968 

    Portland, Oregon:
    – Stan Stasiak defeated Moondog Mayne to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title

    Atlanta, Georgia:
    – Alberto and Enrique Torres defeated Butcher and Stan Vachon for the Georgia version of the NWA Southern Tag Team Title 

    Dothan, Alabama:
    – Frank and Jack Dalton defeated Don Carson and Dick Dunn to win the vacant NWA Gulf Coast Tag Team Title

    1973

    Detroit, Michigan:
    – Kurt Von Hess and Karl Von Shotz defeated Fred Curry and Tony Marino to win the Detroit version of the NWA World Tag Team Title

    1974

    Indianapolis, Indiana:
    – Jimmy and Johnny Valiant defeated Dick the Bruiser and WWWF World Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino for the World Wrestling Association World Tag Team Title 

    St. Paul, Minnesota:
    – AWA Tag Team Champions Nick Bockwinkel & Ray Stevens beat Billy Robinson & Red Bastien
    – Mad Dog Vachon no contest Superstar Billy Graham
    – Buddy Wolff beat Ken Patera
    – Chris Taylor beat Redbeard Munson
    – Reggie Parks drew Tony Rocco
    – Greg Gagne beat Paul Perschmann (Buddy Rose)

    1976 

    Vancouver, British Columbia:
    – Don Leo Jonathan defeated Gene Kiniski for the Vancouver version of the NWA Pacific Coast Heavyweight Title

    West Palm Beach, Florida:
    – NWA Title: Terry Funk defeated Thunderbolt Patterson to retain title
    – Southern Title: Billy Robinson defeated Killer Kowalski to retain title
    – Texas Tornado Match: Omar & Cyclon Negro defeated Rip Hawk & Roger Kirby

    1977

    Miami, Florida:
    – Steel Cage Match: Dusty Rhodes defeated Ox Baker
    – Jack Brisco defeated Superstar Billy Graham dq
    – Jos Leduc & Roberto Soto defeated Angelo Poffo & Hans Schroeder

    1978

    Osaka, Japan:
    – The Samoans (Afa and Sika) defeated Animal Hamaguchi and Great Kusatsu to win the International Wrestling Alliance Tag Team Titles

    1980 

    Augusta, Georgia:
    – Steve Travis defeated Austin Idol to win the NWA Georgia Television Title

    1982

    Omaha, Nebraska:
    – AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel beat Jim Brunzell
    – Hulk Hogan & Baron Von Raschke beat Ken Patera & Bobby Heenan (sub Bobby Duncum)
    – Sheik Adnan beat Greg Gagne dq
    – Brad Rheingans drew Sgt Goulet

    1983

    Miami, Florida:
    – The Fabulous Kangaroos (Johnny Heffernan and Don Kent) defeated Ron Bass and Barry Windham for the NWA Florida Global Tag Team Titles
    – NWA World Title: Ric Flair defeated Rufus R. Jones by dq
    – Florida Title: Mike Graham defeated Kevin Sullivan
    – Angelo Mosca defeated Midnight Rider by dq
    – Jake Roberts defeated Terry Allen
    – Scott McGhee drew Jim Garvin

    1984

    Beaumont, Texas:
    – Adrian Street defeated Relampago Leon to win the Southwest Championship Wrestling Southwest Junior Heavyweight Title 

    1985

    Lakeland, Florida:
    – NWA World Title: Ric Flair defeated Dutch Mantel (Mantell was booker for the CWF)
    – Michael Hayes & Sweet Brown Sugar & One Man Gang defeated Krusher Khrushchev & Jim Neidhart & The Saint (Fidel Sierra)
    – Brian Blair defeated Jesse Barr
    – Mark & Jay Youngblood defeated PYTs (Koko Ware & Norvel Austin)

    1986

    Sendai, Japan:
    – Tatsumi Fujinami and Kengo Kimura are officially recognized as the first IWGP World Tag Team Champions

    Tokyo, Japan:
    – The Jumping Bomb Angels (Noriyo Tateno and Itsuki Yamazaki) defeated Bull Nakano and Condor Saito to win the vacant WWWA World Tag Team Title

    1987

    Memphis, Tennessee:
    – Soul Train Jones defeated Big Bubba for the CWA/AWA International Heavyweight Title

    1988 

    Fort Worth, Texas:
    – Jack Victory and John Tatum defeated Skip Young in a handicap match to win Young and Tony Atlas’ World Class Texas Tag Team Title after Atlas failed to show up for the event

    Chosei, Japan:
    – Jumbo Tsuruta & Yoshiaki Yatsu & Wajima beat Abdullah The Butcher & TNT & Black Assassin
    – Genichiro Tenryu & Ashara Hara beat Great Kabuki & Isao Takagi
    – Shohei Giant Baba & John Tenta beat Kimura & Tsurumi
    – AWA Champion Curt Hennig beat Toshiaki Kawada
    – Akira Taue dcor Buddy Landel
    – Tiger Mask II & Ishikawa beat Pete Roberts & Paul Harris

    Mayagez, Puerto Rico:
    – Hurricane Castillo, Jr. defeated Galan Mendoza to win the WWC World Junior Heavyweight Title

    1989

    Nassau, Bahamas:
    – The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs and Jerry Sags) defeated Johnny Ace and The Terminator for the NWA Florida Tag Team Titles

    Tokyo, Japan:
    – Chigusa Nagayo won the International Wrestling Association of Japan Women’s Title from Madusa Miceli

    1990

    Dallas, Texas:
    – Kerry Von Erich defeated Jerry Lawler to win the World Class Texas Heavyweight Title 

    1992

    Tokyo, Japan:
    – Sakie Hasegawa and Debbie Malenko defeated Takako Inoue and Mariko Yoshida for the AJW World Tag Team Title 

    1994

    Osaka, Japan:
    – Kouji Ishinriki defeated Ultimo Dragon to win the UWA World Middleweight Title 

    1996 

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
    – 2 Cold Scorpio defeated ECW World Television and World Tag Team Champion Mikey Whipwreck to win the Television title 

    Fort Wright, Kentucky:
    – D’Lo Brown defeated Bobby Blaze in a tournament final to become the first Heartland Wrestling Association Heavyweight Champion 

    1998

    New Haven, Connecticut:
    – Jeff Jarrett defeated Barry Windham to win the vacant NWA North American Heavyweight Title 

    2000

    Tokyo, Japan:
    – Tetsuhiro Kuroda defeated Masato Tanaka for the WEW Heavyweight Title

    2001

    Ponce, Puerto Rico:
    – Damien Steele defeated Eddie Colon, Richie Santiago, Black Boy and Rockero to win the vacant WWC World Junior Heavyweight Title

    2005

    – Eddie Colon defeated Titus (Ryan Wilson) for the vacant WWC Universal Heavyweight Title